Sri Lanka’s external sector continued its upward trajectory in May 2025, with the current account maintaining a monthly surplus for the fifth consecutive month, according to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka.

Despite a widening trade deficit of USD 472.5 million, the country benefited from robust inflows in workers’ remittances, tourism earnings, and services exports, which helped offset the gap. However, the trade deficit narrowed compared to April 2025.

Current Account Surplus: USD 190.6 million, up 29% year-on-year.

Workers’ Remittances: USD 641.7 million, up 17.9% YoY; cumulative USD 3.1 billion (Jan–May).

Merchandise Exports: USD 1.03 billion, up 2.3% YoY.

Merchandise Imports: USD 1.51 billion, up 7.3% YoY.

Gross Official Reserves: USD 6.3 billion, covering 3.8 months of imports. GOR include the swap facility with the People’s Bank of China (PBOC)

Vehicle imports including both personal and commercial vehicles amounted to US dollars 118 million in May 2025, bringing the total for the period from January to May 2025 to US dollars 312 million.

In terms of direction of trade, the United States, India, and the United Kingdom remained the top export destinations, while China, India, and the United Arab Emirates continued to be the leading sources of imports in May 2025 as well as during the January–May 2025 period.

Earnings from tourism in May 2025 were estimated at US dollars 164 million, recording cumulative earnings of US dollars 1.5 billion during January–May 2025.